


Blizzard Of '89

by TheGirlWhoWearsBlack



Series: My Christmas Jukebox [7]
Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Annoying relatives, Blizzards & Snowstorms, Christmas, Christmas Fluff, Christmas Party, F/M, Married Couple, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-14
Updated: 2020-12-14
Packaged: 2021-03-10 21:02:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,694
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28073646
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheGirlWhoWearsBlack/pseuds/TheGirlWhoWearsBlack
Summary: Judgemental aunts, ill-intentioned cousins, annoying relatives; what could be worse on Christmas Eve?A big snowstorm and a husband who is not answering any calls.
Relationships: Spencer Reid/Reader
Series: My Christmas Jukebox [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2036053
Kudos: 38





	Blizzard Of '89

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! Welcome to day 7 of "My Christmas Jukebox": 12 days, 12 one shots inspired by 12 of my favorite Christmas songs. I'll be posting every other day until completed as we all get in the spirit and mood for this holiday season.
> 
> Today's shot is inspired by the song "Blizzard Of '89" by The Ready Set ft. Never Shout Never.  
> Enjoy!

There’s this really weird yet prevalent pressure during the holidays to not come alone to family gatherings. Everyone judges you about it. If you didn’t bring anyone; you’re a lonely spinster that will probably die alone. If you bring someone; then they aren’t good enough so you need to dump them, or they are better than you so they’ll dump you. Either way, it will lead to you probably dying alone. From Bridget Jones to Sloane from Holidate, most likely everyone has gone through this awful family situation.

Why the hell did so many of her aunts and cousins have so many opinions about something that did not concern them? YN asked herself the same question every single year since she hit puberty and was in the socially accepted dating age. And even though she was now a grown adult who also happened to be married, the judging still kept going.

“Sweetheart! Oh my, you look so lovely tonight! Come give a kiss to your auntie Margaret.”

YN stood up reluctantly from the couch she was pitying herself on in order to hug and kiss Auntie Margaret’s cheek.

“Where’s the mister, dear?” She asked at the same time she exaggerated looking for YN’s husband in every single corner of the couch, even if it was evident that YN was alone.

“He’s not here yet, Auntie Margaret. Why? You wanted to talk to him or…?”

“Oh no, I just wanted to say hi and make sure that he’s prioritizing you as his wife instead of his job.”

Alright. Ok. Auntie Margaret may have said what she said with a soft condescending tone yet her words were sharp as freaking knives.

“He can do both, Auntie Margaret. It’s called delegating.”

“I’m just concerned that this is how it's going to be all the time, dear. What’s the point of having a husband if he’s not going to show up at any event and you will end up looking like a spinster anyways?”

“I don’t know. To share your life and intimacy with the person who is your best friend and you love the most?” YN asked rhetorically. “I understand if back in the day it was normal to get married for the sake of appealing to society’s standards but in this century, it is about love. Now, if you excuse me…”

YN fought really hard not to roll her eyes in front of her aunt and managed to do it only after she was away from her. She looked at her watch to see that it was getting late and her husband was nowhere to be seen. She dialed his phone number and waited for the tones which never came. Straight to voicemail.

“Hey Spence, it’s me, YN. I just wanted to ask if you’re already on your way? I know it’s kind of crazy to drive up here when you literally just came from a case but I would really appreciate it if you were here. Please call me as soon as you hear this. Love you.”

YN put her phone inside her pocket and turned, only to face her other aunt, Auntie Mary staring at her nearly a foot away from her.

“Geez, Auntie Mary, you scared the shit out me.”

“Language, young lady.”

YN forced a smile trying to cover the fact that she was losing her marbles with all of the family judging that was taking place at the Christmas Eve dinner.

“Sorry, Auntie Mary.”

The two women stared at each other waiting for the other to say something. YN felt her organs squirm with annoyance and finally took the first step.

“Can I help you with something, Auntie Mary?”

“Oh yes, I couldn’t help but notice that your husband Spencer isn’t here tonight. Please don’t tell me that he’s working.”

“As a matter of fact, he came from a case in Portland a few hours ago, so you could say that.”

“I don’t like that your husband neglects you this much, YN.”

“He doesn’t neglect me, Auntie Mary. His job is really important and I completely understand that. He saves lives on a daily basis which is more than we could say about your loser son. Who am I to stop him from doing so?”

“Well, it was indeed impressive when you guys were dating and we thank him for everything he does to keep this country safe, however, you are married now. Spencer needs to find a more suitable job for a family man. A job that allows him to spend time with you, your future kids and provide for them as well since you surely are to quit your job, you have to devote yourself to being his wife.”

YN’s visage couldn’t express that she was unimpressed by the originality of her Auntie Mary’s arguments. She smiled absentmindedly as she forced herself to go to her happy place to avoid snapping at her aunt.

“Auntie Mary: Spencer and I don’t want to have kids. My job is just as demanding as his and I’m not quitting. We have been together for almost six years; we know how to balance our private life with our professional life. Don’t worry about us in that sense. Marriage life isn’t that different from what we had before. It’s only a contract.”

“Oh, dear, but why is it that you won’t have kids?”

“Because we don’t want to and I honestly can’t see why this pertains to you. Merry Christmas.”

YN made her way into the kitchen to snatch a big bottle of wine and then sneak it to her old bedroom. She needed alcohol in her system if she was going to put up with any more of her family members criticizing her husband and their relationship.

“Spence, babe, it’s me again. I know you’re probably on the road but I really wanted to tell you that I need you here. There’s so much I can take without you. Please drive safely. Love you.”

“Spencer’s not answering your calls?” An inhumanely high pitched voice called YN’s attention. She turned to the source of it and saw her cousin Jo. “Oh, poor YN.”

“He’s most likely driving right now, that’s why he’s not answering.”

“Whatever helps you sleep at night, cuz.”

“Why do you mean, Jo?” YN tilted her head to the side, scowling without giving a damn about her cousin noticing her bad mood.

“Well, this isn’t the first time Spencer’s doesn’t come to a family gathering.”

“He literally just flew in from Portland this morning. He’s coming, he’s just a little late. That’s all.”

“Whatever, it isn’t the first time he is late for a family gathering, then.”

“Jo, I really can’t do this right now. My head is starting to ache, just get to the point.”

“What I’m trying to say, is that maybe your ‘oh’ so perfect husband Spencer has someone else at work who’s more interesting than you.”

“You’re saying that Spencer is cheating on me?”

“You said, I didn’t”

“You heavily insinuated it, Jo.” YN inhaled deeply, letting her lungs fill with air and patience. She found herself doing that multiple times already during the evening. “Look, as I already said, I can’t deal with this right now.”

She grabbed a bottle of wine and left the kitchen. She dodged a few of her relatives by avoiding all eye contact and finally managed to sneak into her old bedroom at the second floor of her parents’ house.

If there was someone in the world YN loved to death besides her husband, it was her parents. She loved them madly, they had been the best parents she could ever asked for and gave her an amazing childhood. The only thing that she hated about them, was the over-the-top Christmas Eve party they threw every single year for all of their close and distant relatives. The older YN got, the harder it got to deal with her entire family at holiday gatherings. They always had something to say about her appearance, her career, her love life, anything. Every single time, she felt like escaping and hiding was the best way to deal with it.

YN closed her bedroom door and sat on the carpeted floor, her back resting on the side of her bed. She opened the wine and thanked that it didn’t require a corkscrew to get to the alcohol. She took a big chug of it and placed the bottle by her side. The posters and pictures that decorated her room usually sparked happy memories, but that night, she only felt loneliness.

Since YN met Spencer, everything in her life suddenly became better. Including the holiday season and family gathering. She was no longer pointed at for being single. However, the main difference about being with Spencer was that she had someone to lean on during the harsh judging from her aunts and cousins. Someone she could sneak with to drink wine straight from the bottle without caring about anything else. Spencer was her partner, the only person who understood her and made her feel less alone.

YN was used to being on her own since Spencer had to travel different places because of his job, she usually didn’t mind, not in the least. She also had a very demanding job and for the most part was busy while he was gone. She obviously missed him, but it never felt like the void she was experiencing right then in her stomach.

YN padded her pockets until she found her phone, then dialed Spencer’s number.

A big snort came out of her when he didn’t answer, thus she left another voicemail.

“Hey Spence, uhm, I just wanted to tell you that I really do need you here tonight. My cousin Jo just said one of the stupidest things ever; that you’re cheating on me. Can you believe that?”

YN chuckled in disbelief of her own words only to stop herself when for a split second she wondered if maybe Jo was right. She cleared her throat and kept talking:

“Anyways, I’m starting to get a little worried. I haven’t heard from you since noon. Please call me back as soon as you can. I love you.”

After hanging up, she threw her phone over her bed and went for the wine bottle once more. There was an uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach. She couldn’t put her finger on what exactly was bothering her. Was it that Auntie Margaret was right and Spencer’s priority was his job over her? Was Aunt Mary’s standards about family and marriage what was upsetting her? Perhaps Jo’s insinuation of Spencer having an affair with someone from work was the problem? Something completely unrelated?

YN hated that her family could still get under her skin even after all of those years of her learning how to not give a fuck. She had mastered the art of ignoring them and not let anything they said get to her. Yet this year, this night, she was simply having trouble not doing so and she didn’t know why.

“Here you are!” YN’s mom exclaimed when she opened the bedroom door and saw her daughter sitting on the floor with a half-empty bottle of wine. “Tough night?”

“You know how our family is. They can’t keep their venom to themselves.”

YN’s mom laughed for a second until she reminded herself that those were her sisters YN was talking about.

“Please don’t drag me down again, I can’t deal with them, especially without Spencer. His absence is giving them so much material.”

“Tell me about it. I’ve been with your father for over thirty years and they still manage to come up with mean things to say about him. So no, I’m not dragging you downstairs.”

“Why do they have to be so vapid, though?”

“Because they aren’t happy with their own lives, honey.” Mother answered as if it was obvious.

“Huh. I’ll drink to that.” YN grabbed the bottle of wine and drank from it, then passed it to her mom who also gave it a chug. “Thanks, mom.”

“Sure, baby.” She answered with a single assertive nod. “Anyhow, I came here to ask about Spencer.”

“Please, not you too.” YN scowled and covered her face with her hands.

“Well, honey, I’m just worried because you said he was driving from D.C. and there’s this big storm going on right now.”

“What?”

“Haven’t you looked out the window at all?”

YN jumped from the floor and went straight to the closest window. You could barely see anything outside from all the snow that was falling. Her heart began to race.

“He hasn’t been answering my calls.” YN told her mother. Her face reflected how discombobulated she was. “Is the storm covering the entire state?”

“I don’t know, sweetie, you’ll have to check the weather.”

YN rushed to grab her phone in order to research, but there was already no wi-fi. She then left her room and went downstairs to the studio where the tv was. She turned it on and searched for the local news.

“Is Spencer still not answering?” Jo asked knowing that she was pushing YN’s buttons.

“Shut up, really. I can’t deal with your crap right now.”

YN changed channels until she found one that talked about the storm outside. YN turned the tv volume up to overshadow the non-stop chattering of her family. They acted as if nothing was happening and that enraged her, even if the reason for their lack of sensitiveness was that they had no clue what was going on. All and all the majority of them shut up the second they heard the words: “Winter Storm Alert.”

Much to her dismay, the storm was actually a blizzard that affected most part of Virginia, Maryland and D.C. with winds of 63 km/h.

“I need to call Spencer.” YN whispered, yet in the quietness of the room, everyone was able to hear it.

She dialed his phone one, two, three, seven, ten times but not once did he answer. YN felt her stomach turning, her hands were shaking as the fear of something happening to Spencer, her husband, the love of her life rapidly took over her whole body.

“Why don’t you call one of his coworkers?” YN’s mom suggested it as an attempt to distract YN and give her options.

“Yeah.”

YN checked her contacts until she found one of Spencer’s teammates and called the number.

“Penelope? This is YN.”

“Oh hey YN! Merry Christmas, what a surprise! I can’t wait to see you tomorrow night. We have a lot of catching up to do. I’m not supposed to tell, but I got you a present you’re going to adore-”

“Penelope, I’m sorry, I can’t really talk right now.”

“Oh my God, is something wrong?” Penelope asked, alarmed on the other side of the line.

“Is Spencer with you or with someone from the team?”

“He isn’t with you?”

YN felt all of her blood leaving her body. She felt like she was about to pass out. If Spencer wasn’t with Penelope or his team, then where the hell was he?

“Penelope, this is really important. Do you know if he ever hit the road?”

“Yes, he did. He called me from a payphone at a diner because he was looking for a shortcut to get where you are faster and the map he had didn’t show any. That was about five hours ago”

“Holy fuck.” YN mumbled. “He’s not here yet, Penelope. Why isn’t he here? He should’ve been here by now!”

“YN there’s a blizzard outside, getting stronger and stronger by the second.” Penelope stressed her words. 

“I know. We need to find him. Help me find him. Can you track his phone or something?”

“Uh, I’m not at the office but I can try from my personal computer. Give me a sec.”

As an instinct, YN nodded though it was obvious that Penelope could not see her. She felt herself shaking harder with every second that Penelope took to locate Spencer’s phone. She felt her mother hugging her softly from behind supporting her. While she waited, another call came in from an unknown number. She usually did not pick any calls from random numbers, but this time she had a hunch about it and decided to take it.

“Wait a sec Penny, I got an incoming call.” She switched to the incoming one and answered. “He-hello?”

“Is this YN Reid?”

“Yes. Who is this?”

“I’m from Oakland Medical Center. Ma’am, your husband was involved in a road accident earlier in the afternoon and he’s currently being treated in our facilities.”

Every muscle in YN’s body tensed up as the unknown woman on the other side of the line threw the news on her. She felt like there was no air for her to breath properly and that her head was slowly shutting down. Tears ran on her cheeks though she didn’t feel them. An overwhelming sense of guilt invaded her when she remembered that just half an hour before she had been thinking that maybe he was cheating on her while in reality, the reason for Spencer’s tardiness was that he was in the hospital because he got into an accident while driving to meet her. The guilt turned into fear when the thought of not seeing Spencer again hit her.

“I’ll be right there.”

YN did not hesitate before hanging up and walking to the door of her home in order to get to the damn hospital and see her husband.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Her mom yelled as she approached her. She saw YN putting on her thick snow coat and boots. “There’s a blizzard, things are going to get worse with every second that goes by. It’s too dangerous.”

“That’s why I need to leave now.” YN said firmly. “Buck, I need your truck.”

Buck, YN’s cousin, brother of Jo, stood up from the couch he was sitting on and walked in YN’s direction. He grabbed his own coat and turned to her.

“I’ll drive you.”

“Guys please stay!” Aunt Mary pleaded. “Sister, do something to make your daughter stay for God’s sake.”

“I can’t. She’s a grown woman.”

YN and Buck left the house and hopped in his truck. The streets were barely visible as the blizzard grew stronger and stronger. Thank God the hospital was just a couple of streets away. YN believed that they could make it before it got completely impossible to drive with the storm going on.

YN had never experienced longer minutes than the ones she spent at Buck’s truck trying to get to Oakland Medical Center to see Spencer. This was the first time in her life she actually felt scared, even with everything her husband put himself through in his job.

Out of nowhere, some lights appeared in the distance, taking better shape and then turned into the hospital. YN did not even wait for Buck to park, she simply got out of the vehicle and ran to the emergency room. The snowflakes covered her face and hair in a matter of seconds, and she was sure that her nose was already dangerously cold. She didn’t care. She skidded her way to the main desk and searched for someone who could help her.

“Hi, I’m YN Reid, I was told my husband is here, his name is Spencer Reid.” She blurted out, not caring about how stumbled her words were. She just wanted them out so they could give them an answer as fast as they could.

One of the nurses typed something in her computer, she didn’t look at YN but it was obvious that she was paying attention to her.

“Yes ma’am, he is here. Let me get the doctor for you.”

“Is he ok?”

“The doctor will explain.” The nurse stated. The look of despair in YN’s eyes made her add something else to ease her mind a little. “He is not in a life threatening situation.”

As the nurse’s words reached her ear, YN felt that she could breathe again. The void in her stomach wasn’t gone. She still had a ton of questions and was not going to feel completely relieved until she saw Spencer with her own eyes. YN nodded letting the nurse know that she was grateful for her words before she left for the doctor. YN cleaned the tears from her face and some of the residual snow that hung there.

“Mrs. Reid?”

She did not realize the doctor was talking to her. YN was still not used to being a ‘Mrs.’ though the last name always meant something for her, making her turn to face the doctor.

“Yeah, that’s me.”

“Good evening, I’m Dr. Thomas, I am handling your husband’s case.”

“What happened?”

“You can talk with the police to get better details but apparently your husband crashed onto a tree when he lost control of his car, most likely due to the strong winds of the storm.” The doctor explained with all the patience in the world while YN just wanted to know about Spencer’s health status. “He got away with a sprained neck, a dislocated shoulder and some cuts and bruises. He also presented early symptoms of hypothermia that have been treated. Mr. Reid’s temperature is slowly getting back to normal. Overall, he’s probably going to be in a lot of pain but will be fine.”

It was a lot to take in. There were so many things the doctor said that YN couldn’t process. The only thing she was focused on was in the last sentence, the part where the doctor assured her that he was going to be fine.

“Can I see him?”

“I need to run a few tests on him right now. In ten or fifteen minutes you can see him, Mrs. Reid.”

“Ok. Thank you.”

Dr. Thomas nodded and beamed softly at YN before going back to wherever Spencer was. She spotted an empty chair and sat waiting for the moment they were going to let her see him. The emergency room doors opened and Buck came in. He was covered in snow and was clearly shivering from the cold. He approached her and sat by her side.

“How’s he?”

“I haven’t seen him yet, but the doctor says he will be fine. Sprained neck, broken arm…”

“Oh.”

In that moment, the power went off, and for a split second everything went dark. The blizzard must have already damaged power plants.

“Don’t worry folks. Generator should get going any second now…” Lights went on again before the nurse could finish her sentence. “There we go.”

“Just in time.” YN joked with Buck. “Thanks for driving me. I really don’t know if I could’ve gotten myself here in the state I was and with this storm going on.”

“Sure, you are my cousin. I wasn’t going to let you go through this by yourself.”

“That’s so sweet. I’m sorry I called you a loser earlier.”

“You did?”

“Not to your face, I said that to your mother.”

Buck and YN laughed while trying to shake away the fact that they were spending Christmas Eve stuck at a hospital with a blizzard outside. It felt nice to know that even though her family was a bunch of judgmental vixens, at least she could count on her cousin Buck.

“Mrs. Reid?” Dr. Thomas announced. “Right this way.”

YN followed the doctor. She wasn’t sure of what to expect once she saw him. One thing she knew was that she couldn’t show any sign of shock, sadness or despair, or else, Spencer was going to sense that she wasn’t alright and that would do nothing for him.

The doctor took YN to a private room. Inside, there was a bed, and on it, laid Spencer. His eyes were closed, which made YN think that he was sleeping. Dr. Thomas left YN alone in the room with Spencer.

Never in a million years would’ve YN thought that she would have to drive through a blizzard on Christmas Eve because her husband had an accident. Sadly enough, YN knew deep down that at some point in her life she would have to deal with Spencer getting hurt. His line of work made the possibilities of him ending in a hospital bed astonishingly high. She never wanted it to happen, but she knew. And now it was real, and because of a car accident.

YN sat by his side, her first instinct was to search for his hand to take him into hers, intertwining their fingers.

“YN?”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to wake you up.”

“I wasn’t sleeping.” Spencer answered with a raspy and low voice. “I was just resting a little.”

The two smiled at each other as they got lost in the other’s eyes, like a pair of dumb teens that are experiencing love for the first time.

“I’m sorry, YN.”

“What the fuck are you apologizing for?” She frowned.

“The case took longer than expected. I should’ve been here way earlier.”

“I’m sorry you had to drive up here just because I was too weak to deal with my hideous relatives.”

“You know the reason I wanted to get here is because I wanted to be with you this Christmas, it really has nothing to do with your relatives.” Spencer whispered, then a small smirk popped in his face. “Though I kind of like messing with them a little.”

YN giggled in complicity. Spencer always used his wit and knowledge to mess with her aunts and cousins when they were being extra annoying and judgmental. It was hilarious for both of them to see them struggle coming up with something to fight Spencer. It was practically a tradition for Spencer to stand up to someone at a family gathering.

Spencer moaned in pain after laughing for a couple of seconds. He closed his eyes and scrunched his brows.

“How do you feel?” YN asked him, her hand still caressing his.

“Like my car hit a tree.”

“Hilarious. This is the perfect time for humor.”

“It is. In fact, humor releases endorphins to the brain which help to control pain.”

“Really, Spence. How do you feel?”

“My head aches like crazy, I can’t move my arm and I’m cold.” He finally admitted, he glanced at YN who observed him as if he was a lost puppy.

“Why did you keep driving after the storm alert was issued?”

“I was just a few miles from town and I thought I could make it, YN. I wanted to be there for you tonight. With you.”

“I could’ve dealt with a night without you, but a life…I-I-I don’t even want to think about it.”

“I’m sorry. And I’m also sorry this had to happen on Christmas Eve. You should go back to your family.”

“Are you crazy? I’m staying right here with you. I much rather spend Christmas with you at a hospital than to go back with them. Plus, there’s a huge blizzard going on out there and we don’t drive during storms, right?”

“Yet you came to see me.”

“Yeah, by the way, cousin Buck is here too. He was the one who drove.” YN giggled. “I guess he’s staying with us until the storm passes.”

“Alright.” Spencer gave in. “YN?”

“Yeah?”

“Can you kiss me?”

He didn’t have to ask twice before YN hovered over him and connected her lips with his. They were cooler than usual. The kiss was sweet, nothing too much, yet it felt like it was the best kiss she ever had. Feeling like she was about to lose him, and never going to kiss him again made appreciate everything about this one. When they pulled apart, Spencer’s lips were warmer.

“I love you, Spencer Reid.”

“I love you, YN Reid.”

YN smiled and breathed deeply. Filling her lungs with air and a newly found sense of tranquilness. Only to be disrupted by one thought.

“Shit. I gotta call Penelope. She must be so worried.”

Song: <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n2ebcd0XdBE>

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading!  
> Please let me know what you think <3
> 
> Remember that I'll be posting new shots every other day.  
> Have an amazing holiday season and please be safe!  
> Love, A.


End file.
